He is pretty. Keep at it. Just spend a lot of time in front of the tank (I pull up a chair, as my photo sessions are around 250-300 shots.). Don't try to review the pictures until you are done and they are in the computer, just snap away as fast as your flash can recharge!!

I'm a professional photographer. I know my way around a camera. But these fish are, (a) fast, and (b) I can't say I've ever tried taking pictures through glass before. I also think I don't have the right focal length for a lens to do the job.

This is going to take more serious work on a day when it's sunny and I can open all the windows, turn on all the lights, and turn my shutter speed up really fast. These guys are quick! I have newfound respect for anyone who can get a sharp photo of their fish!

I also now slightly regret the bowfront tank. Focusing, even manually, through the curve is pretty tricky!

The biggest problem I have is definitely the flash. To catch any of my fish clearly, I need a fast shutter speed and a lot of light. Trying to get that light using the flash usually creates ugly shadows that I hate. I know I should invest in some good aquarium lighting for plants, but I may need to do it just to take pictures!

__________________I'd rather be "better" than "right"! :"Humility is the clearest indication of strength". Sure wish I was humble!

I'm a professional photographer. I know my way around a camera. But these fish are, (a) fast, and (b) I can't say I've ever tried taking pictures through glass before. I also think I don't have the right focal length for a lens to do the job.

This is going to take more serious work on a day when it's sunny and I can open all the windows, turn on all the lights, and turn my shutter speed up really fast. These guys are quick! I have newfound respect for anyone who can get a sharp photo of their fish!

I also now slightly regret the bowfront tank. Focusing, even manually, through the curve is pretty tricky!

I'm not a professional photographer, but I am taking a photography class right now. The one problem with having all that external light is that it will be reflected by the glass in the picture. I recently tried the same thing and all you can see are the reflected images in the glass. I really think the light has to come from up above. In fact, the best pictures I've been able to take required me shutting all the curtains, dimming the inside external lights and using no flash. The key for me is the aperture setting.
This just happens to be one example.

__________________I'd rather be "better" than "right"! :"Humility is the clearest indication of strength". Sure wish I was humble!

The biggest problem I have is definitely the flash. To catch any of my fish clearly, I need a fast shutter speed and a lot of light. Trying to get that light using the flash usually creates ugly shadows that I hate. I know I should invest in some good aquarium lighting for plants, but I may need to do it just to take pictures!

I'm not a professional photographer, but I am taking a photography class right now. The one problem with having all that external light is that it will be reflected by the glass in the picture. I recently tried the same thing and all you can see are the reflected images in the glass. I really think the light has to come from up above. In fact, the best pictures I've been able to take required me shutting all the curtains, dimming the inside external lights and using no flash. The key for me is the aperture setting.
This just happens to be one example.

I tend to not ever use my flash, and all of our lights are bendable, for lack of a better word, so I point them away from the tank, but they still provide ambient lighting that helps.

My aperture has been low, but I'm pretty sure a high shutter speed is definitely helpful when you have quick fish if you want the images sharp.

Unfortunately, our in-tank lighting isn't so good at the moment, but we're ordering a better lighting rig this weekend, so hopefully next week things will be better

Also, ISO down won't really do anything except reduce the lighting in the photo, if you bump it up, it will increase the brightness of your photo, but with the gain of graininess. However, depending on your camera, the grain might not show up for quite a bit. I tend to always shoot around 200 ISO as a buffer. But that's when I'm dealing with portraiture